Wednesday 27 April 2011

A SIMPLE WAY TO PATINA

One of the reason's I started this Blog was to share things that I have learnt since my obession with Jewellery Design started. So slowly I will upload some photo's and a general technique for you to use to your advantage.
 I while back I started seeing all these Patinaed Brass findings on Etsy & had to know how to do it, so the search began and I came across this product Rub & Buff and I love it;').
So, how to Patina the easy way(without ammonia).

STEP 1 :
APPLY TO BRASS WITH A SOFT CLOTH/LEAVE TO DRY AS PER INSTRUCTIONS.
STEP 2: REMOVE EXCESS WITH SAME SOFT CLOTH BY GENTLY RUBBING.


STEP 3 :APPLY A THIN COAT OF SEALANT TO PREVENT PATINA WEARING OFF.
 


THE THING, DO YOU NEED IT?

The Thing!
Do you need a thing?
This question has been haunting me for quite some time now and I am slowly deciding on an answer.
I believe the answer to be Yes! You do need a thing.
Well.......... okay, what is it?
To me, it is something that sets you as a Jewellery designer apart from the rest. So maybe you create your own components and incorporate them into your work. Maybe it becomes a signature line? You may even move away from beading all together and create pieces to sell for other to turn in to masterpieces. What ever it is most designers develop it at some stage or another.
So, Do I have it?
This, I am unsure off. I have been told my more than one person over the past four years that I have a very distinctive design style and I must say when I am out and about I can pick my pieces so I guess I do in that regards. But is it a thing?
Yes!!!!!!!! I believe it is ;')
However I am always searching and learning to create a bigger and better things.
Something that is uniquely mine, apart from design style.
Happy Creating
Teena



Friday 22 April 2011

INSPIRATION

INSPIRATION ! WHAT IS IT?
in·spi·ra·tion/ˌinspəˈrāSHən/Noun
1. The process of being mentally stimulated to do or feel something, esp. to do something creative: "flashes of inspiration".
Inspiration comes in many forms for me. The number one form is other people. People with whom I interact with either face to face or through social media. I adore the feedback, the comments and the suggestions. This positive energy inspires me to create more. To create things that are bigger(not literally) and better, to  show and have that WOW factor. I live for the reaction from others, I guess its my driving force, its what inpsires me to keep creating.
I have flashes of inspiration other ways also,such as the piece to the left. I had been out shopping with my husband and four kids (uh huh I have 4 kids). We stopped at a park after shopping for the kids to play. Whilst sitting in the car with my baby at the time watching the other kids play, it simply came to me from nowhere to create a chainmaille centre piece( a czech bead encased in chainmaille). Now I am not saying this hasn't been done before, as I am sure it has, but I hadn't done it. The challenge for me at the time was to develop kits that taught people something significant. To me that really should be the piont of a kit........ Anyway I couldn't wait to get home and get started, I had been inspired!. By what?, who knows. Maybe the joy of watching my kids play and laugh had relaxed my mind enough to allow it to think outside the square.

I am also inspired regularly by other designers, the way they put colours together or the complexity of a design they exhibit may inspire me to strive harder.

New beads can inspire me also. Sometimes when I am stuck. I go shopping looking for the unusual and the quirky to get the juices flowing. Nothing I love better than when those beads arrive.

Then there is a friend whom I spend sometime with on the odd occassion who is a VERY creative person on so many levels. I find that whenever I am with her, things she says or pionts out often sends me into a whirlwind of inspiration. She comes into my workspace with fresh eyes and makes comments or asks questions which make me really think.
         I guess you could say she is my Muse;')..........

Thursday 21 April 2011

Lampwork Beads

Lampwork Beads...... What can I say I absolutely LOVE THEM. It's only been a recent love affair starting with a friend who took me a bead show here in Melbourne and I meet some Lampworkers who had the most amazing beads and they were cheap, but definatley not nasty ;')

Then I noticed a fellow designer across the water in Alaska, her name is JO CONWAY designing almost everything with Lampwork. I was hooked.....Here designs have and always will blow me away, her FB link is below.
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Borealis-Glitter/106182446078229
Jo has recently embarked on the journey of making her own Lampwork beads and let me say she is a quick learner and making some great beads already. If and when they are for sale... who knows? We can only hope she sells them ;').

I have lampworking on my list of things to learn. I have done Polymer clay and Silversmithing this year, both of which I use in my work and am honing my skills on the them regularly.

I tend to use a Lampwork beads in earrings the most, reason being its adds interest and I find earrings so difficult to design.
I was thinking about that other day and I would honestly have to say earrings are the most challenging as the size that sells tends to be small and that leaves a minimal range of designs. In saying that, though I must be on the right track most of the time as Earrings would be my number one sellers, followed by Necklaces, Rings and then Bracelets.

When it comes to buying Lampwork, I do like a bargain and can spend hours scouring Etsy( my second home) for bargains. Here are some of my favourite Lampworks online through Etsy.
http://www.etsy.com/shop/mandrel2?ref=pr_shop_more
http://www.etsy.com/shop/MadeByFire
http://www.etsy.com/shop/firebabies

These people I have bought from and regularly they are all o/s but there are some awesome Aussie ones too.

http://www.bellissimojewels.com.au/
http://www.jawjee.com/
http://www.beadywendy.com.au/

So if you have an oppurtunity to have a look at these talented people, I am sure you won't be dissappointed, let them know Teena sent you ;')

Happy creating

Wednesday 20 April 2011

Here are some examples of work I did for an online bead store, these were published in Creative Beading Magazine. I did loads more plus a stack for Australian Beading Magazine over a period of 18 months. The opportunity to design and create kits  to be published in the beading Mags was amazing. It taught me to think out side the square and challenged me at every turn. Although I no longer design for this store I still try to use these lessons learnt in my designs today, in order to keep things fresh and interesting. I feel its important to continue to develop and evolve and push yourself even if its right out of your comfort zone.
The picture directly above was way out of my comfort zone and started my love of "STEAMPUNK".

The pink one to the right was based on a design I used and entered into a Vintaj Brass design comp, which won ;') (lucky me). The out of the box moment here was the use of the bead caps, to create a fantastic back drop for the vibrant lucite flowers. I recently incorporated this technique is a Steampunk necklace with fabulous results, the watch face being the centre of the flower;').
This one here was based on an earring I did using a layering technique. As bib style necklaces are always in, in some form or another it was a unique take on the style. The effect is outstanding. Trinity Brass's Antique silver range is divine. I adore the deep vintage colouring. I never been one for the full shiny silver look, a bit here and there is nice. The Antique silver certainly lets the colour of the bead shine true.

Products I use

I tend to be a creature of habit. Once I find a product that I like and works well I will stick with it.
I have been using for quite a few years now Vintaj Brass and more recently a newer company called Trinity Brass, both are of excellent quality and offer me the designer the most amazing designing scope. The main reason I use both of these companies is the wearability, they do not make the skin go green or itch in 99 percent of the cases do not cause ear problems. This I have found imperative to the continued success of selling my items as SO many people have allergies or irritations these days. I am posting the links to there home pages so you can find out more.

Welcome

Hi :-) My name is Teena

Me & My youngest 


Nice to me to you !
I have been designing Jewels for a while starting back in 
2006 approximately. I work from family home, where I am also the mother of four children.
My desire to create jewels started out simply as a way to making gifts for family & friends, with never the intention of it becoming a business. However as some of you may now,one thing leads to another.
I started attending markets & with a fantastic response, this spurred me on to bigger & better things, seeking better quality components & teaching myself continual new techniques. Something of which I have never stopped doing. I have had amazing opportunities,such as working with an online bead store,designing kits which also lead to being published many times over.
I am currently studying at NMIT in Melbourne "Object & Jewelry Design" in my constant quest to better myself & my designs.